https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com
Dedicated to sharing my passion of handwritten notes, cards and letters ...Wed, 12 Jul 2017 06:16:47 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://secure.gravatar.com/blavatar/3e1cf278b069cba904b7e226bcb54ca7?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fs2.wp.com%2Fi%2Fbuttonw-com.pnghttps://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com
April is National Letter Writing Month!https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/04/01/april-is-national-letter-writing-month/
https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/04/01/april-is-national-letter-writing-month/#respondSat, 01 Apr 2017 15:50:01 +0000http://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/?p=648More]]>Here we go! Get out some pens, cards, and stationery! Who are you going to write this month? I’m doing the #30lettersin30dayschallenge with #write_on! Even if you don’t do all 30 days, how wonderful to think of others and surprise them with a letter. Let me know who you will the lucky people are that will receive letters from you! I’m going to think outside the box a bit. Stay tuned!

Thank you all who have watched my TEDxCamarillo talk about the gift and power of handwritten letters! It has been fun getting letters, reading comments about how the talk inspired people to write and hearing stories about how it triggered memories about special letters from you! National Letter Writing Month is right around the corner. I’ll write more about that next time!

]]>https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/03/13/1000-views-thanks-for-watching-my-tedx-talk/feed/0julieljbLetterfromlisaYou’ll want in on this deal …https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/youll-want-in-on-this-deal/
https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/youll-want-in-on-this-deal/#respondThu, 05 Jan 2017 00:42:28 +0000http://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/?p=515More]]>This is why I love Embossed Graphics Stationery: For the month of January, you can get TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE (or if you prefer the word BOGO) of note cards, folded notes, letter sheets or gift enclosures.

These are the current correspondence cards that I’m using. They are perfect for a thank you thinking of you or a short letter.

]]>https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/youll-want-in-on-this-deal/feed/0julieljbcorrespondencecardWhy A Letter A Week?https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/01/02/why-a-letter-a-week/
https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/01/02/why-a-letter-a-week/#respondMon, 02 Jan 2017 21:17:10 +0000http://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/?p=461More]]>A Letter A Week was created to inspire myself and others to write someone at least once a week. The possibilities are endless of who we can write.

Though many consider it a lost art, I will forever write as long as I’m able. There’s a simple yet, most personal connection with one’s own writing, sealing an envelope and dropping the letter in a mailbox. Once a letter leaves us it is up to the receiver to let the gift of the letter carry on.

Some friends drone on to me about how there’s no need to write when we have instant communication through texting and social media. I don’t care. It’s classy, it’s timeless, and many still enjoy receiving a handwritten letter.

]]>https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2017/01/02/why-a-letter-a-week/feed/0julieljbA letter a week on Instagramhttps://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2016/04/04/a-letter-a-week-on-instagram/
https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2016/04/04/a-letter-a-week-on-instagram/#respondMon, 04 Apr 2016 23:12:06 +0000http://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/?p=365More]]>I’ve decided to just have an Instagram account for all things letter writing for now. When my book is ready I’ll definitely be back on this site as the name of the book is … A letter a week.

So, if you are reading this please jump over to Instagram and follow me at @aletteraweek.

April 1 started the #write_on 30 letters in 30 days challenge so I encourage you to dive in–even if it’s only a letter or two.

I’m not one to watch funeral services online, but today I listened to former First Lady Nancy Reagan’s. How wonderful to hear about the handwritten letters that President Reagan wrote to her over the years. Even better was to hear that she kept all the in a shopping bag in her closet. I’m working on writing a book about letter writing and when I did a survey for family and friends, one of my questions was do you keep letters. Do you keep them in a special place?

If you google Ronald Reagan letters you’ll see many from the former President. He had a way of expressing himself that was simple, funny, and honest, yet caring and genuine. May they both rest in peace.

]]>https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/letters-from-a-president/feed/0julieljbletterreganletter“I believe in the handwritten note.”https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2015/10/30/i-beleive-in-the-handwritten-note/
https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2015/10/30/i-beleive-in-the-handwritten-note/#commentsFri, 30 Oct 2015 19:13:49 +0000http://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/?p=324More]]>I haven’t been blogging much, but that doesn’t mean I’m not writing and sending cards. I don’t even know where to start with some of the cute stationery I’ve mailed recently so I’ll just feature one here today.

Go to this site and I bet you’ll order something. The quality of the paper and envelopes is very good. She sells a lot of kraft enveoples, but color always adds a little brightness when opening the mailbox and their colored envelopes do that. The Best Wrapped Foil cards are perfect because you can write a salutation in the small box. So far I’ve written “Happy Birthday”, “Feel Better” and “Hey you!” on them. A good choice to send a male a card with these. Not feminine or masculine, again, just perfect.

They also sell a Grab Bag Surprise. This is a fantastic deal for 10 cards for only $22.00 right now. It is normally $32.00, which is still a great deal. She also throws in a few pens and a surprise. I ordered this and can’t tell you how perfect all the cards were. The packaging and presentation–lovely!

Off to buy some Halloween candy for the kiddos. I’d much rather give them stationery, but doubt that would go over well. Hee, hee!

Meet Margaret Haas and Victoria Vu, founders of the LA Pen Pal Club. The two stationery enthusiasts host the monthly meetup, during which guests can talk correspondence, share interesting letters they’ve received, saddle up to a typewriter or take pen to paper. Here, they talk about postcards from Italy and the pen pal who wouldn’t have to write anything at all.

When did your interest in the epistolary world begin?
I was making birthday cards for family members when I was very young, around kindergarten of first grade. They were mostly decorated with stickers, but a heartfelt message was always the center of attention and what I’d spend most time on. I’m sure there were a lot of typos, but you got the general idea. Picking out just the right postage stamp for the envelope was always the cherry on top.

Here are photos of my bulletin board before and after from this afternoon. I enjoy having them up on my board to remind me of the wonderful friends and family I have and those who like to keep in touch through written correspondence. Every couple months I take down cards that I put up and put in a file. At the end of the year I’ll go back through them and either toss them or hang on to them. All mood driven. I’m a big fan of The Minimalists, but believe you can still have the memory of something even though you no longer have the tangible item (sorry mom, I tossed the peacock glass Christmas display thingy you made for me years ago–but see, I still remember it).

I went to Europe last month and enjoyed sending postcards from the Netherlands and Belgium. One afternoon friends had to wait for me to go to the post office to get stamps. They couldn’t believe how much I spent on postage, but I figure if I didn’t spend it on that it would have been for some meaningless souvenir…Here is a photo of my postcard and stamps. The other photo is from the post office where I think the USPS could increase revenues if they had a number system like they did in Belgium. So, I picked # 301. When I looked up at the screen it was #290 so I perused through the stationery racks and supplies they had there. Let’s just say I purchased more than just postcard stamps.

Of course I thought the stamps were lovely. In Belgium they were beautiful butterflies and in the Netherlands they were of bikes, cows and tulips. I know I returned home before these arrived, but it’s still fun for me to send to friends and relatives.

Happy June! I’ll be posting more soon. Until then, I’m just wondering–do you purchase postcards when you travel? Do you save cards and letters? Regardless, I hope you find time to write someone even if it’s just to say hello.

]]>https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2015/05/31/do-you-save-cards-and-letters/feed/0julieljbimage1880D7539-F8C2-417F-931C-FF714C09C063IMG_6349Guys who write …https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/guys-who-write/
https://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/guys-who-write/#commentsThu, 19 Feb 2015 20:26:43 +0000http://writingaletteraweek.wordpress.com/?p=284More]]>“What are the odds? Not one, but here are two cards we received already this year from guys and were the same type of note cards. I hope American Greetings sees this and is thrilled!

I received Owen’s card last month for donating to his Rally Me fundraiser for his windsurfing competitions (remember I mentioned loving sports in my last blog?). The greatest thing that was by donating $20, that was the perk–I’d receive a handwritten thank you note. I was beaming when I read that!

The holes in the cards are because they have been up on my bulletin board. I don’t think I’ve ever had two cards at the same time like this and definitely not from two guys. Very cool!

The other card is from a friend my husband has known for years. We attended his surprise party a few weeks ago and not only was I completely shocked to receive this handwritten note from him, but his writing was quite nice and I never expected it to look the way it did. Total judgment I guess, but I expected it to be sloppy. Ha! I’ll have to send him this link and hear his response.

Being a former middle school science teacher I have a strange memory where if I run into a former student, I remember their writing more than their face or name. I’ll have to dig out some old letters from former students…someday.

This morning I read this article, How a personal touch stands out in the digital age and even posted it onto a friend’s Facebook page. I’m all for emails, texts and twittering to and about others, but whether it’s a co-worker, boss, vendor, or customer, today’s businesses could still utilize sending a handwritten note.

Rich Eich summed it up in the last sentence of the article, “The business world could gain a lot by recapturing this lost art. The next time you want to congratulate someone for a job well done, share a project outline with your co-workers, thank your boss for giving you a raise, inspire a newly hired worker, or show appreciation to a client, make it personal and better yet –write it by hand. You will be pleasantly surprised by the effect it has.”

On the Facebook post I said, “I’m visualizing a nice flat note card with your name or business logo on it. I forgot to add that Embossed Graphics is my favorite for personalized stationery. Their partner websites Fine Stationery and Gifts in 24 have a great deal with free return address on envelopes that normally cost $29.99. 50 note cards for around $50 isn’t bad. I think they make a bold statement, so another reason to purchase if you have a need for personalized stationery. The card stock quality is medium paper weight and comes in a nice gold box. I have given men boxes of this stationery and they raved about how much they enjoy it, use and re-order!

The verbiage about the banner card and bordered cards are not only worded perfectly, but are the ones I’ve purchased the most!

“Impressive & classic! Our bestselling Banner Card is designed to impress. Its thick, creamy paper feels smooth and substantial in hand, and the name confidently announces itself. The personalization appears in upper-case, crisp, embossed lettering, accented by two bullet points at either end and two horizontal bars above and below. Ships in 24 hours.”

“Order the Bordered Note as your primary stationery. Your eyes will widen as if you were staring into a diamond. Each note is enclosed by a border that will adorn your message. A simple design gives you enough freedom to use this note all year round. Made for every occasion, the Bordered note will deliver each time.”

I read this out loud to my husband and he thinks I’m crazy. I don’t think I’m crazy, just full of passion! This is exactly why I started this blog–to share my passion for keeping the art of hand-written letters alive!

Bottom line, guys write! Right on! I’m going to share this post with guy friends and ask them to let me know the last time they wrote a handwritten note or letter. ~JM